Naloxone remains stable several months after expiration date, study shows



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Naloxone, the generic name for the drug, is sometimes referred to as a "stroke" or "rescue shot" because of its ability to bring back someone after an overdose of opioids. It has been used for a long time in hospitals and by emergency medical technicians, but as the crisis of opioid dependence swept through the country, it was increasingly accessible to drug addicts and their entourage.

Narcan, a nasal spray with naloxone, has been shown to be chemically stable for 10 months after the stated expiry date. Evzio, an injection of naloxone, was chemically stable for at least one year after its expiry date. The products tested were not stored under ideal storage conditions, the researchers say.

"The branded prescription products, auto-injectors and nasal spray, both are still being tested, and every time we test them, they always test 100%," said Charles Babcock, Assistant Clinical Professor. at the School of Pharmacy at Marshall University.

Babcock said the results would be expected for naloxone stored in a controlled environment, but not for products stored by patients.

"All of them tested the same thing, which was impressive, especially since we had actually administered these products to patients," said Babcock, the principal investigator of the research, presented Tuesday at the annual meeting of PharmSci 360.

"I dispense naloxone all the time to patients, and a couple came after it expired, they used it and people were brought back to life."

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Chris McCurdy, president of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists in 2018, said: "This research, particularly with naloxone, is obviously important right now and because of the opioid crisis we face." . McCurdy was not involved in the research.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse estimates that naloxone administered by non-medical professionals saved at least 26,500 people from drug overdoses between 1996 and 2014.
According to a study, the availability of antidote in case of overdose does not always mean less deaths

Research like this could change the expiration dates of drugs, said McCurdy, a professor of medicinal chemistry at the College of Pharmacy at the University of Florida. Regulators need to do more research "so that we can get meaningful expiration dates for products that people can really trust," he said.

"To show that these drugs are actually stable beyond their expiry date indicates that we need to contact manufacturers and regulators and obtain proper expiry dates for these products."

However, it does not recommend people to take expired medications.

"We respect the expiry date, and we do not recommend people to take drugs beyond their expiry date because, quite frankly, we do not know whether it has broken down or not." , did he declare.

According to Lee Cantrell, a professor of pharmacy and medicine at the University of California at San Diego, research on drug expiration date tests is beneficial from an economic and health care perspective and did not participate to the new search. For some drugs, extended expiration dates may increase their availability if needed.
"If some studies showed that drugs remained viable longer and that drugs did not need to be returned as quickly and redeemed, that would be a huge saving for the health system," Cantrell said. also director. California poison control system, San Diego Division.

Search on drug expiration dates

Naloxone is not the only drug to have retained its activity after the expiry date placed on the market.

"I just do not think we're here for the expiry date of prescription drugs in the United States," Cantrell said. "This is only an additional science that confirms the fact that different types of drugs retain their effectiveness for years, even decades, after the expiration date."

Are we throwing out? expired & # 39; drugs too early?
Last year, Cantrell had discovered that epinephrine, the active ingredient of EpiPens, was still present until 50 months after the stated expiration date.

His sample consisted of 40 expired EpiPens, including nine EpiPen Jr; the drugs are used to treat allergic emergencies. EpiPen Jr contains the correct dose of epinephrine for a patient weighing between 33 and 66 pounds.

The study found that 61% of EpiPens and 56% of EpiPen Junior contained at least 90% of their stated amount of epinephrine.

EpiPens still powerful 4 years after the expiry date, according to a study

"They had expired for up to four years and we analyzed them, and we found that they all contained a residual dose that could be found therapeutic," he said.

This year, the FDA extended by four months the expiry dates of some lots of EpiPens in order to combat product shortages.
Cantrell's research revealed that a number of active ingredients in prescription drugs remained potent after their expiration date stated on the label. Some of the drugs tested had expired 40 years ago.

"Acetaminophen, caffeine, codeine, are the ones that people will probably recognize," said Cantrell.

Acetaminophen is present in many over the counter products to relieve pain and fever and to treat coughs, colds, flu and insomnia. Codeine is used in some cough and cold medicines and to relieve pain.

Butalbital, methaqualone, phenacetin, meprobamate, pentobarbital, secobarbital, hydrocodone, homatropine and chlorpheniramine were also active after the expiry date.

Although expired medications may still work in some cases, patients are always advised not to take them. The drug may not be as powerful as it has to be to help.

"The best thing to do is to not take any outdated medication and consult a pharmacist to determine what to do with this medicine to properly eliminate it," said McCurdy, of the drug. American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists.

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